OF BUNGA TELUR AND

BALLY SHOES

Che Husna Azhari

 AUTHOR’S
BACKGROUND

• Che Husna Azhari hails from Melor, Kelantan, a village town

between Pasir Puteh and Kota Bharu is the setting frequently
used by Che Husna in many of her short stories.
• Che Husna’s first collection of short stories, Kelantan Tales was
published in 1992. This was followed by Melor in Perspective
and The Rambutan Orchard.
• Che Husna also wrote a collection of poems in Malay and
English entitled Puisi Ambo (My Poems) which was published
in 1996.
• Many of her short stories are published in journals. Her latest publication, The
Man Who Built Gul-e-Stan, forms one of the collection of short stories in Voices
of South East Asia recently published by SEAMEO, the Regional English
Language Centre, Singapore.
• Two of her poems have been recorded in casette entitle Suararasa produced by
the Cultural Unit of the National University of Malaysia.
• She is also one of the Panel of Judges for the National Science Poetry
Competition since 1995.
 OVERVIEW

• The story is set in a traditional Malay village in the state of Kelantan, which is located
on the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
• Among the Malays, weddings are usually celebrated on an elaborate scale. Although
the story takes place in contemporary times, matchmaking is still practiced.
• The older folks, usually the women, take the responsibility of choosing a bride
/bridegroom for their children.
• This is often followed by the elders taking full charge of the wedding preparations.
• Amongst the Malays, the 'bunga telur'is a must. The 'bunga telur' is a hard-boiled egg
that is presented in a special case to guests who come for the wedding.
 SYNOPSIS
• Jamal, a young Kelantan's man, who wants to married by his mother's choice. The
woman whom his mother considers of a good family, pretty and cultured. The wedding
be held in three months' time.
• The time is needed to make the wedding arrangements. Jamal was becomes busy with
the wedding preparations. He plans out a budget to meet the cost wedding. He face a
problem with the bunga telur as he finds the cost of preparing bunga telur is
expensive.
• He sells a few things to raise money for his wedding. He tries to get a bank loan but
does not offer for loan ,as the repayment is high. He gets some money from his mother
for his wedding.
• The wedding preparations are almost done. Everyone compliments Jamal on his
wedding rehearsal. When it is time Jamal to put on his shoes, his Bally Shoes are no
longer around.
• The layman’s plot: Man is getting married and needs money – fast. Despite revising
the budget, he is still short on money for the bunga telur. But there are his leather
Bally shoes…
 CHARACTERS

• Jamal - A young man who struggles to come up with the money for his wedding as the
day approaches.
• Jamal 's mother - A status-conscious woman, yet caring and kind towards her son.
• Jamal 's sister - Also status-conscious, seems to have a say in Jamal 's wedding.
• Cousin Lan - Jamal 's cousin who is too into his looks, and likes to buy branded items
though he cannot afford them.
 CONCLUSION

• Simple story but the irony is not lost. To pay for a tradition of serving bunga telur at
his wedding, he has to sacrifice something he did not think would have been a
necessity for the wedding itself!